The invention generally relates to a distribution system for many types of products classified according to product type such as clothing, shoes, bags, and wallets as well as by the design, color, or size of each product type and, more specifically, relates to a distribution system in which small quantities of several such products may be delivered in the same package to a retail store or other customer facility.
The sale of miscellaneous goods such as fashion apparel and other clothing and accessories as well as shoes, bags, and wallets involves the display of a variety of types of products at retail stores. As products are specifically classified according to design, color, size, and other attributes, this requires the storage of the products as stored inventory in store storage space and promptly offering these products according to customer requests, which in turn necessitates the tasks of searching for and locating stored inventory.
However, retail stores must give priority to floor space utilized as an exhibit area for customers. Limits are placed on the area reserved for storage, and the arrangement and storage of in-stock products by type, design, color, size, and other attributes are notably difficult.
Moreover, jumps quickly take place from one group of hot-selling merchandise to the next in the areas of fashion clothing and miscellaneous goods. Even in-store stock moves frequently between production factory or long-term storage, which complicates inventory management.
Packaging such products by product type, design, color, and size when they are to be shipped increases the number of packages and brings a decrease in shipping efficiency.
As FIG. 6 shows, conventional distribution systems for the process of shipping and in-store storage of varying types of products for retail stores use a mixed packing method in which a plurality of products of differing types, designs, colors, and sizes are packed in one package and provide a package content list for each package that indicates in detail the products contained therein.
Such conventional distribution systems comprise a shipping site 20 and a receiving site 30. The shipping site 20 comprises a computer 21 that in turn comprises a printer and display 23 that prints a work order 24 showing the products to be packed for the order. The receiving site 30 comprises a database system 34 that electronically stores the details of package content and a computer 31 that comprises a display 33 and a printer 35 that prints a package content list 36. The computer 21 of the shipping site 20 and the computer 31 of the receiving site 30 are connected via a data transmission route 5. At the shipping site 20, the products to be shipped to the receiving site 30 are packed in the package 2 according to the work order 24, and once packing is complete, the package 2 is delivered to the receiving site 30 via a distribution network 4.
In this distribution system, package content data for the package 2 is prepared by the computer 21 of the shipping site 20 and transferred via the data transmission route 5 to the computer 31 of the receiving site 30, where it displayed on the display 33, printed as the package content list 36 by the printer 35, and electronically stored as inventory data in the database system 34.
In the distribution system shown in FIG. 6, the package 2 is shipped via the distribution network 4, and package content lists corresponding to mixed packages containing a plurality of products of differing types, designs, colors, and sizes are sent as the package content data of the package 2 via the data transmission route 5.
The problems of the distribution system shown in FIG. 6 are that either the generation of package content data for the package 2 is troublesome or the efficiency of packaging is low at the shipping site 20 and that disparities between inventory data and actual products in inventory arise, if only temporarily, because the time of arrival of the package 2 at the receiving site 30 and the time of arrival of the package content data at the receiving site 30 do not coincide.
When a plurality of products of differing types, designs, colors, and sizes are to be mixed and packed in a package, it is extremely difficult to determine the gross volume of the products that could be packed in a package of a certain volume prior to the start of packing because the volumes and shapes of the products differ.
Therefore, when many products are to be packaged and a plurality of packages are to be shipped to one receiving site 30, it is extremely difficult to include work instructions for a plurality of packages appear on the work order 24 at the shipping site 20.
Packing must proceed according to the following procedure: All work instructions for the products are listed on the work order 24 even when they are to be separated into a plurality of packages. A mark (a dashed line 25) indicating a division between the products packed is placed in the work order 24 during packing. Based on the work order 24 marked with the dashed line 25, a package content list for each package is input into the computer 21 and sent to the receiving site 30 via the data transmission route 5.
The items in the work order 24 could be listed in groupings constituting a range of products that could individually fit within the packages by calculating the volume of the products, but discrepancies between calculated values and package data would bring redundancy to the work, a number of products fewer than could be normally packed would have to be designated, and packing efficiency would necessarily decrease. If the designated number of products could not fit in the associated package, another content list would have to be prepared.
In other words, conventional distribution systems problematically require a new package content list to be prepared for every box.
Even when the package content list data of the package 2 arrives at the receiving site 30, the package content is displayed on the display 33 of the computer 31, the package content list 36 is printed on the printer 35, and the data is stored in the database system 34, this data remains invalid until the package 2 actually arrives at the receiving site 30, where it must be compared with valid data on actual product inventory. Once the package 2 does arrive, the data must be revised to valid data.
As has been discussed, the generation of detailed content data for each package 2 based on the actual packing records is necessitated at the shipping site 20 for mixed packages containing a plurality of products of differing types, designs, colors, sizes, and other attributes in a conventional distribution system. At the receiving site 30, this data must both be compared to valid data on actual product inventory and, when the package 2 arrives, be updated to valid data.
The distribution system of the invention, which ships products packed in a package 2 at a shipping site 20 via a distribution network 4 to a receiving site 30, sends in the package an electronic tag 1 containing data on the packaged products.
The products contained in the package 2 are of a plurality of types, and the data stored on the electronic tag 1 contains quantity information and specific data on the type, color, size, and other attributes of the packed products.
In the distribution system of the invention, the shipping site 20 comprises a display 23 that displays packing work for products to be packed in the package 2 and a tag write device 22 that writes data regarding the packed products on the electronic tag 1. The receiving site 30 comprises a tag read device 32 that reads the data stored on the electronic tag 1, a database system 34 that stores some or all of the data stored on the electronic tag 1, and a printer 35 that prints the data stored on the electronic tag 1.
Furthermore, in the distribution system according to the invention, either the shipping site 20 or the receiving site 30 may be the division that generates the forms to be attached to packages. In either case, the shipping site 20 has a collection and delivery function for mixing the collected products of differing types and packaging them according to the individual receiving site units.